(10/24/06) CENTRAL ISLIP - Police say a Sound Beach man attempted to hire an undercover cop to kill his estranged wife.

Prosecutors claim Gary Katz, 51, has been planning to have his wife killed since July. His nine-year marriage yielded two children, but the district attorney's office says a messy divorce drove Katz to find a way to keep all his assets. According to police, Katz drove to his house on October 3 with an undercover officer posing as a hit man. Police say Katz made the hit man take a polygraph test to ensure he was not a police officer. They say Katz also purchased a plane ticket to leave the U.S. on the day of the planned assassination.

Police report Katz had $30,000 in cash on him at the time of his arrest, with $275,000 more back at his home. Prosecutors charged Katz with criminal solicitation and conspiracy and are holding him on $1 million bail. If convicted, he faces up to 25 years in prison.